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From Irish Eyes to Short Attention Spans
The book Green Suede Shoes is a rock 'n' roll story of Irish immigration, told by Larry Kirwan, the leader of the Irish American rock band, Black 47. It describes his journey from County Wexford, Ireland to the Bronx and follows him downtown to the clubs of the Lower East Side, where his best friends in his new homeland were the punk rockers the Ramones, the soon-to-be-starlit Cyndi Lauper and the future members of his legendary band. In celebration of St. Patrick's Day, he walks us through his musical memoir. Also: an oft-cited criticism of classical music is that symphonies, operas, etc. are just too long. But there are also plenty of examples of composers who can write really short pieces – many less than one minute in length - and still get their point across, from Chopin to Webern. Briefing us on this issue is Frank Oteri, composer and editor of NewMusicBox.org.
» More on Black 47 and Larry Kirwan
» Got a Minute? A Few Words on Music in 60 Seconds or Less by Frank Oteri
» Top Five Irish-Music Venues in New York
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Go behind the scenes!
Find out what John Schaefer and the Soundcheck staff have to say about recent segments on the show. Plus, watch videos from in-studio performances.
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Introducing our Video Contest
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John Schaefer gives the lowdown on Soundcheck's music video challenge with the Fiery Furnaces.
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The 22-year-old multi-instrumentalist performs live in our studio.
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Cucu Diamantes Performs Amor Cronico
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In Studio: Stephanie McKay
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The local singer-songwriter performs "Jackson Avenue," a nostalgic toast to her childhood in the South Bronx.
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In Studio: The Decemberists
The Portland, Ore., band's latest album, "The Hazards of Love," is a concept album with a mythological flair. They joined Soundcheck to play live for a studio audience in WNYC's Greene Space.
Sound Off
Soundcheck
Throughout May, Soundcheck presents “Sound Off” a Friday series on the many aspects of noise in music and our lives. The series -- which coincides with “Better Hearing and Speech Month” -- looks at issues like New York’s noisiest neighborhoods, the latest research on iPods and hearing loss, and what happens when noise becomes a musical ingredient.
